Significant discoveries have been made in the past. Here is a summary of some of the most important discoveries of the past:
| 1980 | Early detection guidelines are set for breast cancer. |
| 1983 | Ralph Steinman discovers the role of dendritic cells, which later become the basis of therapeutic cancer vaccines. |
| 1990 | Study data syhows decreased risk of colon cancer associated with diet rich in fruits and vegetables.. |
| 1996 | Study shows increase in lung cancer deaths among nonsmoking spouses of smokers and secondhand smoke increases mortality from lung and heart cancer. |
| 1999 | Robert A. Weinberg announces that he has been able to turn a normal human cell into a cancer cell with three defined genetic elements: an oncogene, inactivation of two suppressor genes, and the gene for telomerase. |
| 2000 | Draft sequence of the human genome announced in June. |
| 2002 | Bert Vogelstein announces a new screening teset for colon cancer that detects specific genetic abnormalities in stool samples of up to 70% of patients with colon cancer. |
